Intel confirmed that it will not release an updated version of the Core Ultra 9 290K Plus.

New Intel Core Ultra 200S Plus chips

In the Arrow Lake‑S Refresh desktop processor lineup from Intel, only two models are now available:

What happened to the Core Ultra 9 290K Plus?

Initially Intel planned to release a 24‑core Core Ultra 9 290K Plus. However, the company abandoned that plan, stating that existing options already fully satisfy the target audience and cover all necessary use cases.

> “We believe that the Core Ultra 7 270K Plus and Core Ultra 5 250K Plus are already perfect for most users. Therefore an additional 290K Plus model is unnecessary,” said Florian Maisslinger, Intel’s technical communications manager in Germany.

Despite the cancellation, the Core Ultra 9 290K Plus continued to appear in early leaks and even in some test databases after the official announcement of the two new models. This attracted community attention, but Intel confirmed its decision not to release this processor.

Why is the 290K Plus unnecessary?

- Similar specifications: The Core Ultra 9 290K Plus would have offered the same number of cores as the 285K and 270K Plus models, without a noticeable performance improvement.
- Optimization already exists: The Core Ultra 7 270K Plus uses the same software and hardware optimizations, allowing it to sometimes outperform even more expensive chips in tests.

Conclusion

Intel continues to focus on the two key Arrow Lake‑S Refresh processors, promising “exceptional value” and high gaming performance. The flagship 285K Plus model remains the series leader, but the Core Ultra 7 270K Plus already demonstrates competitive results thanks to thoughtful optimization.